


What Happens Afterwards

by lunacchiii



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Dragon Age: Inquisition Spoilers, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Inquisitor & Dorian Pavus Friendship, Inquisitor & Solas Friendship, Mage Inquisitor (Dragon Age), Minor Female Lavellan/Solas (Dragon Age), Post-Dragon Age: Inquisition, Post-Dragon Age: Inquisition - Trespasser DLC, Reference/mention of Solavellan, Solas (Dragon Age) Spoilers, The Winter Palace (Dragon Age)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:47:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,819
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25726912
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lunacchiii/pseuds/lunacchiii
Summary: Dragon Age: Inquisition - Trespasser DLC Spoilers!The truth about Solas and his plan hits Inquisitor Luna Lavellan hard, but fortunately Cullen is there for her.The two don't know what is in store for them in the future, but all they have right now is the Inquisition--and each other.
Relationships: Female Inquisitor/Cullen Rutherford, Female Lavellan/Cullen Rutherford, Female Mage Inquisitor/Cullen Rutherford, Female Mage Lavellan/Cullen Rutherford, Lavellan/Cullen Rutherford
Kudos: 9





	What Happens Afterwards

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! I just finished my third run of DA:I and Trespasser hit me hard this time--harder than it did the first two times I played it. This fic is how I imagine my Inquisitor copes with Solas immediately after the events of Trespasser. (It was a tad unrealistic that Lavellan looked completely happy and fine in the epilogue/outtro, so I guess this is my personal canon of what really happens. Not that it matters to the actual plot anyways--I just like writing things that give me the big hurty. I also love Cullen with my whole heart, so this is another opportunity for me to write him.) I used some dialogue from the actual game.  
> Enjoy!
> 
> Meanings of some terms, if anybody needs them:  
> *Ar lath ma = "I love you" in Elvhen  
> *Vhenan = "my heart" or "my love" in Elvhen

Cullen sat back in his seat anxiously while he watched Josephine’s desperate attempts to quell the concerns of both the Orlesian and Ferelden ambassadors.

Watching this particular session of the Exalted Council unfold was indeed difficult; Ferelden sees the Inquisition and the might of its military force as a threat to their kingdom, and Orlais would rather see it bound and leashed under its power. Both of which were problematic demands—prior to the Council taking place, the Inquisitor showed an inclination to disagree with the views of both nations. Not to mention, she had already began formulating long-term plans for the Inquisition to remain even though Corypheus was already two years dead. Which, of course, was a resolve that none of her advisors disagreed with. Even though the past two years have been relatively peaceful, no one is sure if absolutely nothing was brewing in the aftermath of the Mage-Templar Wars. The Inquisition could still do good and remain as the eye of the storm in times of national hardships to come.

But, however challenging this Council session was (especially for Josephine, who was already about an hour into verbally wrestling with Duke Cyril and Arl Teagan), it was not even the root cause of Cullen’s growing anxiety—not even remotely. Selfish as it may be, his attention was solely set on waiting for Luna to come back from pursuing the Qunari plot through the Eluvians.

Luna, the Inquisitor, the Herald of Andraste…now his wife. His **wife** was out there crossing Elven portals back and forth and fighting hordes of Qunari in efforts to uncover a potentially catastrophic plan that could destroy southern Thedas. And here he was, the illustrious commander of her armies, stuck at the Winter Palace and attending today’s Council as one of the representatives of the Inquisition.

Was it ridiculous that they got married just mere days ago at the Winter Palace, while the Council was still taking place? Probably. They had been together for almost three years, and despite all the dealings with the Venatori, the breach, and various other evils in the world, it had been the happiest three years of his life. Every time she hopped on her horse and headed out of Skyhold, it was potentially the last time he would ever see her again. Any mission could have been her last. Hell, she probably was supposed to die fighting Corypheus. But, for whatever Maker-given reason, she seemed to be defying all odds each time she came back to him.

He closed his eyes as he tuned out the Council from his mind, and recalled a painful memory from hours ago. He was in a private meeting room assigned to the Inquisition, arguing with Josephine about how to deal with the ambassadors.

Then there was a loud crackling noise, and everyone’s heads turned to the other end of the table. Him, Josephine, and Divine Victoria—Leliana—watched Luna scream out in pain, clutching her glowing, Anchor-marred hand. He remembers the next words that she had uttered vividly.

"Shit! Damn it! We save Ferelden, and they’re angry! We save Orlais, and they’re angry! We close the Breach twice, and now my own hand wants to kill me! Could one thing in this fucking world just stay fixed?”

She lets out a strained, labored sigh. “I need to get to the Darvaarad. You all can fight amongst yourselves once I’m…once I’m back."

He knew she wanted to say “once I’m dead”.

Cullen rubs his face in weariness and worry. With her worsening condition, the probability of her dying in battle was likely increasing. The only sliver of comfort he was trying to hold on to was the fact that Dorian went with her. Because the sassy Tevinter mage was her best friend after all, he would not let anything happen to her. Cullen hopes, at least.

 _Any time now_ , he thought, fidgeting with the seams on his leather gloves as his eyes remained fixed on the door to the great hall.

After what felt like an eternity to Cullen, the door he was intently staring at for the past twenty minutes suddenly swung open. In walked an elven woman who wore the same crimson-colored Inquisition formalwear he had on. Everyone in the room collectively gasped, then settled into a low hush as she walked in.

The familiar sight of the woman’s black hair and honey-colored skin washed a wave of relief over Cullen, but he was taken aback when he realized her left forearm was missing. He watched silently as she walked to the very front of the room, noticing a large tome tucked under her remaining arm.

He watched as her eyebrows scrunched together in determination, and her green eyes flashed like emeralds in the night as she stopped to stand beside Josephine. It was the same powerful glint in her eyes that he once saw when she told him to help everyone escape Haven, before she almost single-handedly held off Corypheus and the Venatori forces.

“You all know what this is,” Luna proclaimed to the Council, raising up the tome for everyone in the hall to see. “A writ. From Divine Justinia authorizing the formation of the Inquisition. We pledged to close the breach, find those responsible, and restore order. With or without anyone’s approval.”

She turned back to face the nobles standing behind her. “I’m proud to say we accomplished that goal. We will honor the sacrifices of those who gave their lives in defense of what we stood for…and still stand for.”

“Because our work is not done. Where we led in war, we will now serve in peace. The Inquisition will act as Divine Victoria’s personal honor guard. Answering directly to her, we will transition from a military force into a peacekeeping organization.”

The entire room was dead silent, still processing the Inquisitor’s words. As she looked around the room, the determined expression on her face slightly shifted into a look of wistfulness as she made her final remark on the decision. “My own adventuring days may be done, but the Inquisition—and its mission—will continue.”

Once finished with all that she had to say, Luna promptly exited the meeting hall.

Divine Victoria approved of Luna’s decision, and called for the conclusion of today’s Council. Nobles and various other authorities soon flooded out of the hall moments later. The Exalted Council wasn’t completely over, as there were still small details to be discussed over, but its most crucial decision had been made that day—the Inquisition was to remain after all.

As Luna paced through the grand marble halls of the Winter Palace, trying to get to her private room as fast as possible and away from all the people who might confront her directly about her decision, she heard a familiar voice call her from behind.

“Luna!”

She turned around, and saw Cullen running towards her. Before she knew it, he caught her in a tight embrace, and the tome fell from her arm and tumbled to her feet. She slowly returned his embrace, and tears started to fall from her eyes. Cullen pulls away and kisses her. It was the type of kiss that was the very embodiment of longing, of concern, of gladness. A kiss that says _“I don’t care about the hundred or so Orlesian guards and nobles staring at us right now, because thank the Maker you’re alive”_.

Cullen held her face in his hands, and Luna looked up to him with eyes brimming with tears, letting out a dry chuckle. Cullen bent down to pick up the tome, and placed an arm around Luna’s shoulder.

“Let’s go,” Cullen told her, and they walked in silence to their room.

* * *

Before Cullen could finish locking the door and turn around, he heard Luna’s quiet sobbing that was slowly intensifying. He turned and saw her already sitting on the bed, her hand covering half of her face as more tears rolled down her cheeks. He walked over to her and sat down next to her.

“I’m here for you. Tell me everything that happened—when you’re ready,” he comforted her, rubbing her left forearm and kissing her temple. “I’ll get a bath running for you, if you want,” he suggested, to which Luna replied with a frail nod.

* * *

One long bath later, Luna emerged from the bathroom now dressed in a long, plain cotton tunic. Cullen was seated on their bed, leaning against the headboard and idly thinking. When he saw her walk towards him, he opened his arms, and she climbed onto his lap.

A long, teary conversation then ensued between the two. Luna, with her head on Cullen’s chest, poured out everything she had said and witnessed in her last conversation with Solas, now known as Fen’Harel—the Dread Wolf. Cullen listened silently as he gently stroked her head, although in quiet astonishment.

Solas, the mysterious apostate that joined the Inquisition willingly, and pledged to help defeat Corypheus. Solas, the elf that led them to Skyhold. Solas, the man that he went to for short lessons in Elvhen and Dalish customs when he wanted to show Luna how much she meant to him.

There was an anger, but also a deep, protruding sadness in Luna’s shaky voice as she talked. To her, Solas was not just one of the people that she owed the Inquisition’s success to, but he was one of her most treasured friends. As the First of Clan Lavellan, she was a little sheltered from the other elves, and didn’t really have any peers to relate to when her magic first manifested. Solas eventually became just that for her, and she was grateful. Even though she had only just met Solas right after the explosion at the Conclave, he felt like a familiar presence that reminded her of home.

In between of Luna’s retellings of what happened at the elven ruins, Cullen’s mind wandered a little, still trying to grasp that Solas—out of all people—was behind much of what had unfolded in the past three years.

Not that it was particularly important to the current situation, but he has admitted before that he had wondered occasionally if something more would have happened between Solas and Luna, if everything had played out differently. When he first asked Solas to teach him more about Dalish culture, there was a palpable tension in the air between them during the first few lessons (that faded away eventually), but it still struck Cullen as something very strange.

The same thought popped up in his head again as Luna told him more of Solas’s plans, but it was not a pleasant nor appropriate train of thought for him to think about. He shook the idea away out of respect for both Luna and Solas, even though the Dread Wolf was no longer the man he thought he knew.

“He was my friend, and I do feel manipulated, but the worst part is…” Luna paused, haphazardly wiping the tears off her face with her sleeve, “I wasn’t even angry at him when he told me everything. He was almost justifiable to me—that he had good reason to destroy everything we’ve ever known to replace it with something else he cared more about. I could have, no, should have…seen it coming. Where did I go wrong, vhenan?” she looked up at Cullen. His heart breaks a little when he sees the woman he loved the most—probably the most powerful woman in all of Thedas right now—look back at him with a crushed, defeated expression. “How are we going to stop him? I’m no god, Cullen,” she shook her head and turned her gaze to her lap. “I’m just some stranger who was thrown into—all of this—by sheer chance.”

In this moment, Cullen has no answers for her questions either, and he feels like a complete fool. Simple platitudes to calm her can only go so far; all he could do was hold her tightly while he processed everything she told him.

“If…if he succeeds,” Luna turned to cradle Cullen’s face with her hand and peered straight into his amber eyes. “I know I say this every day but, vhenan, I love you. I don’t know what’s going to happen. If we end up dying by his hand, I am…” she cried. “I am so sorry for everything I did—or didn’t do—and I will love you forever.”

Seeing the pain and desperation in Luna’s profession, Cullen’s eyes started to well up too, but his brows were tensely furrowed. He now felt her frustration and the anger she was trying so hard not to feel, because ultimately Solas was still one of her most treasured friends in spite of all his plans of death and destruction. If not for Solas, the Inquisition would not have made their permanent home at Skyhold, and it would probably have not survived to see success after the attack on Haven. But also, if not for Solas, he probably would’ve never gotten to call the Inquisitor his wife.

The room was silent for a short while, and Cullen’s steely expression of muted anger softened into a look of solemn heartache as he brushed a strand of hair away from Luna’s cheek. In the momentary silence, a thousand thoughts rushed through Cullen’s mind. He saw a vision of them working together night and day to maintain the new Inquisition, exploring more of Thedas and staying with Clan Lavellan for a little while, and maybe after that they’d end up building a home back in Honnleath. He closed his eyes briefly and saw a vision of two children, a girl and a boy…their potential children. All of that was so close he could taste it—and now, after hearing about Solas’s plans, that future could be gone in the blink of an eye. Only now did he realize what was at stake.

“We are not going to let that happen,” he assured her, his steady voice starting to falter and tremble. “We will—we will find him and redeem him. We are not going to die,” Cullen firmly tells Luna, a full tear now rolling down his cheek. “We will do it one day at a time. We will make everything right, eventually. Today, everyone here and in every other major city in southern Thedas owe you their lives.” Luna smiles weakly at him, but she doesn’t say anything.

“Listen,” Cullen takes hold of Luna’s hand and gives it a soft kiss. “What matters is that you came back alive today, which gives you another chance to change Solas’s mind. You took out the Qunari plot successfully, and you made a decision for the Inquisition when it was needed. You did great today,” he comforts her.

Luna breathed out a ragged sigh, and nuzzled closer to Cullen’s chest. “Thank you, vhenan. I don’t know where I would be without you.”

“Ar lath ma,” he replies simply with a warm smile, before kissing her.

* * *

The sky that was once a brilliant shade of cerulean soon faded into a deep violet, and dusk eventually settled into Halamshiral. While Luna now lay asleep in Cullen’s arms, Cullen was staring up at the ceiling, thinking about the influx of visions he had earlier. The things he saw were the work of no magic, but it was the love he had for the woman sleeping beside him. He looked down to see her sleeping soundly, and smiled at her. It was nice that she was finally getting some well-deserved rest from her exertions today—both the physical and emotional ones. He gently kissed her forehead before he closed his eyes and he, too, soon drifted into sleep.

In uncertain times like these, he would usually be plagued by constant nightmares despite having quitted lyrium for almost three years now. The dreams happened much less than they used to—but when they did, they were still dreadful enough to wake him up and leave him feverish and covered in sweat. This time, though, something inside of him wanted him to be strong…for her. Just as she was always there to calm him down and soothe his pain after particularly difficult nights, he wanted to do the same for her. He loved her immensely, and he would do anything to make her happy. Even if it meant convincing an actual _god_ not to carry out a destructive, world-bending plan that would change Thedas as they knew it.

The future years will be difficult, but he was not going to give up just yet. Whether Solas was going to take a year or ten to carry out his plan, he was going to make the most of the time they had together and work tirelessly to convince the Dread Wolf that their world was still worth saving.


End file.
